Drive device



July 29, 1947.

F. L. M navrll DRIVE DEVICE Filed Feb. 9, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l WITNESSESI awww? /dw ATTO NEY July 29, 1947. F. L. ALBEN DRIVE DEVICE Filed Feb. 9, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENToR /cFan/(L. /ev?.

BY 1 Arron Y Patented July 29, 194'?L UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE DRIVE DEICE f'Fra'nk L. Alben, Pittsburgh 'Pa.,'assignor to West- 'ingho'use Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation 'of Pennsylvania Application February 9, 1945, "Seria1`No. 577,083

`5 Claims.

My invention relates, generally, to locomotive drives and more particularly, to ydrives for transmitting torque 'from one source of power, such as a steam or gas turbine, to a plurality of driving axles.

I n'view of the'deman'dior motive power lhaving higher speeds and greater hauling capacity with economy of fuel and. water, steam turbines are being utilized as 4the prime movers for locomotives. However, in 'order for 'turbine driven locomotives todeliver maximum Apower and operate most enicieritly, they must be provided with a `relatively large number of driving wheels and means "for driving La. plurality of the wheels from a single turbine.

-An Aobject "of my invention, generally stated, is to *provide 'a drive for a turbine locomotive which shall be simple and eicient in operation, and which lmay be economically manufactured and installed.

A more specicobject'of myinvention isto'provide a exible drive for transmitting torque from a single turbine to a plurality of the axles` of a locomotive.

Anotherobject of my invention is to provide a gear -drive unit which may be 4readily `removed from the main truck lframe of a locomotive.

Other lobjects of my invention Will 'be explained fully hereinafter 4or will be apparent 'to those skilled in the art.

In accordance with Aone embodiment of my invention, `e'achdriving axleof a locomotive is'driven by a double `end flexible spring cup quill drive. A spur' gear is secured to each quill and is driven by a pinion secured'to ashaft'on which-is mounted a -bevel gear which meshes with a second. 'bevel gear 4mounted `on a drive shaft disposed longitudinally of the locomotive. Thegearsior each pair of adjacent vaxles are all lcontained in a gear case supported by the main truck frame. The low speed gear with the `quill drive can be removed easily `from the main truck, and `each pair of adjacent driving axles with their `component parts can also be removed lwitl'i'out disturbing the remainder of the drive unit.

-For a Afuller understanding of the nature and objects of my invention, reference may bel-lad to the following `detailed description, taken in -conjunction with 'the vaccompanying drawings, in which:

VFigure 1 is a view, inside elevation, of a locomotive embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view, in plan, of one lof theldriving trucks of the locomotive;

Fig. 3 is a View partially -in side elevation, and partially in section, of the 4truck shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 lis an enlarged view, partially in plan and partially in section, of one ofthe reduction gear and flexible drive units lfor the locomotive, thes'ectio'n being taken along the line V-IV of Fig. v5;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view, `taken along the line V -V of Fig. 4, and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view, taken along 'the line V'I-'VI of Fig. Y5.

Referring to the drawings, and particularly lto Fig. 1, the locomotive Vshown Atherein comprises a cab. portion I0 having a boiler II disposed therein and Yspace for storing the fuel and water required for operating the locomotive. The cab |10 is lcarried by two main truck frames I2 which may be identical in construction.

shown most clearly in Figs. 2 and 3, each truck frame l'I2 comprises a one-piece steel frame I3 with `side :members and. journal Vboxes disposed outside of the wheels, andsuitable cross members. The boiler and cab superstructure are supported on two center pins I4. there being one center pin for each truck I2. Additionalsupport for the cab may be provided by 'spring loaded pads which may be located t'o obtain satisfactory distribution of Weight on Vthe rails.

As described in` 'my copending application SerialNo. 574,553, iiled-January 25, 1945, each main truck *I2 is provided with four driving axles I5, 'having wheels I' secured thereto which are of 'a relatively small diameter. A four-wheel guiding 'truck Il fis provided at the front end of each main truck I-2. Utilization of the small diameter driving wheels permits a comparatively short, rigid Wheel base, and also provides additional space for the boiler II withoutincreasi-ng the overall weight of the locomotive. In 'this manner, a boiler of suilicient size to kgenerate steam for operating va locomotive having a high horse power rating may be provided.

The power -ior propelling the locomotive may be developed by two steam turbines I8, there being one turbine mounted in each main truck I2 with its axis disposed longitudinally of the truck frame. A reverse gear unit I9 may be provided for each turbine to reverse the direction of operation of the locomotive.

Since the main trucks I2 are identical in construction, the structure of only one truck will be described in detail. The torque developed by the turbine I8 is transmitted from the turbine to the driving wheels I6 by means of a drive shaft 2l and gear reduction and ilexible drive units 22, which are enclosed in housings 23. The drive shaft 2l is located on the longitudinal center line of the truck and, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, is provided with suitable bearings 24 and 25 which are located in the gear unit housings 23. It will be noted that the bearing 24 is of the doubletapered type.

As shown, a combined geai` reduction and flexible drive unit 22 is provided for each pair of adjacent driving axles, two such units being required for the four driving axles of each main truck I2. A double end flexible spring cup quill drive is provided for each axle I5. The iiexible drive may be of the type described in the copending application of W. A. Brecht and F. L. Alben Serial No. 574,554, filed January 25, 1945.

As shown, a spring cup spider 26 is pressed on each end of a quill 2l and engages a mating drive spider 28 which is Pressed on the axle I5. Roller bearings 29 are provided in the gear housing 23 for the quill 2l. In this manner the driving torque is flexibly transmitted to the driving wheels I6 which may be of a relatively small diameter.

As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, a spur gear 3| is secured to each quill 2l and is driven by a pinion 32 secured to an auxiliary shaft 33 on which is mounted a bevel gear 34 which meshes with a second bevel gear 35 mounted on the main drive shaft 2l. These gears are all contained in the gear housing 23, and suitable roller bearings 36 and 3l are provided in the gear housing for each auxiliary shaft 33. The bearing 36 is of the double-tapered type.

As shown, each gear unit housing may be supported by lugs 38 which rest upon brackets 39 secured to cross members of the truck frame I3. The housing 23 is so constructed that a lower portion 4I may be removed to permit the removal of a low speed gear with its quill drive. If desired, an additional portion 42 of each housing may be removed along with the portion 4I, thereby permitting the removal of each pair of adjacent driving axles with their component parts without disturbing the remainder of the drive unit. Since the gear unit housing 23 is of an oil tight construction, satisfactory lubrication of all the gears and bearings, which are enclosed within the housing, is provided.

As shown in Fig. 6, a flexible coupling 43 which is preferably of the internal-external gear type, may be provided inside of the housing 23 for the drive shaft 2|. A divided collar 44 having a flange 45 may be clamped on the shaft 2| by bolts 46 to limit longitudinal movement of the section of the shaft which extends to the next drive unit 22. A similar coupling and collar may be provided in the next drive unit, thereby limiting longitudinal movement of the shaft 2l in both directions.

From the foregoing description it is apparent that I have provided a locomotive drive which makes it possible to transmit the torque of a fluid turbine to a plurality of driving axles in a simple and efllcient manner. The drive possesses suiiicient flexibility to permit the misalignments encountered during the operation of the locomotive. Furthermore, the drive is so constructed that all parts may be readily inspected and, if necessary, removed for repair or replacement.

Since numerous changes may be made in the above-described construction, and different embodiments of the invention may be made Without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a locomotive drive, in combination, a plurality of pairs of axles, a drive shaft disposed longitudinally of the locomotive, an auxiliary shaft for each axle disposed at right angles to the drive shaft, bevel gear means for interconnecting the drive shaft and said auxiliary shafts,

a quill surrounding each axle, means for flexibly connecting the quill to its axle, a gear secured to said quill, a pinion meshing with said gear, said pinion being secured to the auxiliary shaft for said axle, a gear case containing all of said gears for each pair of axles and having bearings therein for said quills and said shafts, said gear cases being split in two horizontal planes, and means for supporting said gear cases independently.

2. In a locomotive drive, in combination, a plurality of pairs of axles, a drive shaft disposed longitudinally of the locomotive, an auxiliary shaft for each axle disposed at right angles to the drive shaft, bevel gear means for interconnecting the drive shaft and said auxiliary shafts, a quill surrounding each axle, means for flexibly connecting the quill to its axle, a gear secured to said quill, a pinion meshing with said gear, said pinion being secured to the auxiliary shaft for said axle, a gear case containing al1 of said gears for each pair of axles and having bearings therein for said quills and said shafts, said gear cases being split in a horizontal plane through said axle and also in a horizontal plane through said drive shaft, and means secured to the gear cases between said horizontal planes for supporting said gear cases independently.

3. In a locomotive drive, in combination, a plurality of pairs of axles, a drive shaft disposed longitudinally of the locomotive, a gear unit for each pair of axles having an auxiliary shaft for each axle disposed substantially parallel to its axle, bevel gear means for interconnecting the drive shaft and the auxiliary shafts, a quill surrounding each axle, means for flexibly connecting each quill to its axle, spur gears for connecting each auxiliary shaft to its quill, and means for supporting each gear unit independently of the other units.

4. In a locomotive drive, in combination, a plurality of pairs of axles, a drive shaft disposed longitudinally of the locomotive, a gear unit for each pair of axles having an auxiliary shaft for each axle disposed substantially parallel to its axle, bevel gear means for interconnecting the drive shaft and the auxiliary shafts, a quill surrounding each axle, means for flexibly connecting each quill to its axle, spur gears for connecting each auxiliary shaft to its quill, a gear case containing all the gears of said unit, and means for supporting each gear unit independently of the other units.

5. In a locomotive drive, in combination, a pair of axles, a drive shaft disposed longitudinally of the locomotive, a gear unit having an auxiliary shaft for each axle disposed substantially par-- REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

Number Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Black Feb. 14, 1936 Reid et al Feb. 16, 1926 Reidinger Sept. 14, 1937 Levin Mar. 23, 1915 Pender Feb. 8, 1921 Troeger Nov. 14, 1905 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Switzerland Feb. 1, 1928 Switzerland May 1, 1918 

